Shoe



H.J. RUDNER sHoE Filed July 21 Feb. 4, 1941.

ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 4, 1941 mid UNITED STATES PAT SHOE Harry J. Rudner, Little ENT 'ori-Ice Falls, N. Y., assignor to Melrose Slipper Co. Inc., Little Falls, N. Y., a

, corporation of New York Application July 2 1, 1939, serial Nofzssfmi 2 claims. (c1. :i6-2.51,):

This invention.l relates to improvements in shoes and more especially to improvements in mid-soles for shoes and an improved method of making the same.

The use of relatively thin mid-soles of rubber, cork, or other suitable materials, in the ordinary shoe, is attended with no'diiculty .and the shoe structure, except for the addition of the mid-sole, may remain unchanged. However, the use of *soles or platforms in shoes of the platform type presents many problems especially as in this type of shoe various styles which have been adopted require the use of platforms not only of greatly increased thickness in their foreparts but of variable thickness in their shank and heel parts. It is, of course, highly essential that the foreparts of the platforms sible while a reasonable amount of stiffness or rigidity is required in the shank and heel portions not only to properly the wearer, but to enable the shoe to maintain its shape and to form a suitable seat for the attachment of a heel.

Probably the most common material used for mid-soles or platforms of platform shoes is felt, although cork has also largely been used as has sponge rubber, fibre and other exible materials. It is manifest that materials which will have a suitable amount of flexibility to permit their use in the forepart of a platform cannot be depended upon to give the necessary stiffness to the shank nor will materials such as sponge rubber, felt, etc. form suitable attachment seats for wooden or other heels. impossible to type certain styles which would otherwise be desirable.

One of the more general objects of the present invention is to bring about a form of shoe. and more especially a mid-sole for a shoe, wherein the thickness of the desired at the heel, shank and forepart without sacrice of iiexibility in the forepart or strength or rigidity in the heel be as exible as pos- Fig. 4 is support the foot of Fig. 5 is shoes.

As a result, it has heretofore been embody in shoes of the platform mid-sole may be varied as the shank lthe shank the` above ends the use of shank or stiffness, and a feain a shoe in which sole prior to assembl ing one of the im the structure thereof; and

a diagrammatic View illustrating the method of forming mid-soles for` right and left and shank portions, I3 and in the degree of Another object of the invention is to bring about a form of mid-sole for a shoe and a method of making the same wherein may be obtained without other stiening devices.

In a specific aspect, theinvention relates to a form of midsole consisting of a flexible forepart joined, at the forward end of the shank, to a heeland shank portion formed of material having a reasonable amount of ture of the invention resides form these portions separate' units each being forme rial having characteristics adapti mands of the specific portion of ture in which it is to be embodied. part I6 (Fig. 2) may be formed material, such `as felt, having the I ness and may be rounded s eral edge portions bined shank and is an arrangement for'attaching the land foreparts of the mid form a construction whic in a shoe provided with a ntion; a side elevational view of a shoe havproved mid-soles embodied in 20 ds the invention resides and combinations of parts and claimed.

Referring to the drawing in which a preferred 2,5 form of the invention is shown for illustrative purposes, the reference n cates, in general, one form of shoe in which a mid-sole having the featu been embodied and, as sh that the shoe I0 include which an upper I2 has a mid-sole orY platform bottom of the inner sole of the upper, an outer s applied to the bottomof the mid-sole. specific shoe illustrate that the mid-sole of relatively great ness of the mid-so umeral I Il (Fig. 4') indires of the invention has own, it will be observed 30 s an inner sole II over been pulled and secured, `I3 being applied to the and over lasted portions ole I 4 and heel and heel portions thereof.

and heel In order to avoid any compromise in the degree of flexibility of the forepart of the mid-sole stiffness and strength in portions thereof, I prefer to 45 sole initially as d out of mateng it to the dethe shoe struc- 'I'hus the fore- 50 out of flexible required thicko as to give its periph- I1 the required shape, the comheel portion or unit I8 being 55 heel, shank -sole together so as to h is embodied as n attached heel.

A further feature of the invention resides in 5 a form of construction which lends yitself to the use of fabric or other coverings for the marginal edges of the mid-sole in accordance with the novel designsof shoes now in use.

To these and other en in the novel features hereinafter described In the drawing:

Figures 1 and 2 areperspective views of the heel, shank and foreparts of the improved midy into a mid-sole unit;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a completed midsole according to the inve a unit I5 being 35 In the d, it will be further noted I3 is provided with a forepart thickness and that the thickle increases markedly through 40 formed out of relatively stid or rigid material, such as wood, the unit Il being turned, molded or otherwise fashioned to give the required shape to the heelv and shank portions of the shoe. In accordance with one of the features of the invention, to be hereinafter described, the heel and shank unit I8 terminates at its forward end in an attaching face I9 which is at right angles to the medial line of the heel and shank.

In the assembly of the mid-sole unit (Fig. 3) the transversely extending shank end 20 of the forepart I6 is brought into contact with the face I9 of the heel and shank unit I8 and the two units properly aligned are temporarily supported in a clamp or press while the binder 2| is applied to the peripheral edges of the mid-sole.

The binder 2| may be of any suitable fabric satisfying the requirements of the particular style or design of the shoe and is of a width great enough that its marginal edges may be pulled over the upper and bottom faces of the unit and cemented or otherwise attached thereto. In the drawing, the reference numeral 22 indicates that portion of the binder which has been pulled over and cemented to the upper faces of the heel and shank unit Il and the forepart I6, but it will be understood that, although not shown herein, the lower marginal edges of the binder are similarly pulled over and cemented to the vbottom faces of the mid-sole. Moreover, the binder as a whole is cemented to the peripheral edges of the mid-sole, the joint or joints between the ends of the binder being spaced from the joint between the forepart and the heel and shank part a sufficient distance such that a relatively strong joint between these parts will be formed. The mid-sole, when thus completed, is ready for assembly in a shoe.

The assembly of 'the mid-sole in a shoe will be readilyunderstood by those skilled in the art and need not be described herein in detail. Sufiice it to say that a leather outer sole Il may be secured by cement or in any other convenient manner to the bottom of the mid-sole, and the heel I5 of wood covered with any suitable material may also be cemented or otherwise attached to the rearward end of the mid-sole.

The materials forming the composite parts of the mid-sole may be varied within the invention. Hair felt forms a desirable material for the forepart and the bottom of this portion of the midsole may be slashed, if desired, to give it added flexibility. -Furthermore the forepart, when formed of hair felt, may be sprayed or soaked with rubber latex to increase its Wear resistance, to make it substantially water-proof, and to give it that firmness and stability desirable in a shoe. While I prefer to form the heel and shank unit out of wood, this portion of the mid-sole may be fashioned out of cork or rubber or other materials having satisfactory characteristics.

The heel and shank portion of the mid-sole may be used for both rights and lefts as its side edges are symmetrical with respect to the medial line thereof and, as pointed out above, the forward end is substantially at right angles to the medial line. Thus, when a mid-sole for a shoe for the left foot is to be assembled, a forepart corresponding to the full lines 23 will be attached to the shank and heel part i8 while, in the case of a mid-sole for the right foot, a forepart corresponding to the dotted lines 24 will be attached.

From the above description of the invention it will be readily understood that the heel and shank portions of the mid-sole may be varied greatly as to size and shape while still maintaining the desired degree of stiffness and strength necessary not only to give comfort to the wearer, but to enable the'shoe to stand up under use, the forepart of the mid-sole, notwithstanding any variation in the heel and shank portions, remaining constantly flexible.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention it will be understood that the same is not limited to the precise details shownand described but is capable of modiiication andvariation within the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new, is:

l. In a shoe construction having the usual inner sole and out-sole, the combination therewith of a mid-sole extending the full length of the shoe. interposed between said parts and having its forepart materially thicker than the inner sole and out-sole and tapering rearwardly from said forepart to substantially increased thickness at the rear portion of the heel, said mid-sole being composed of a shank' part of rigid material and a forepart of flexible material, and joined together at an intermediate point thereof, a binder applied to the marginal edges of the mid-sole and overlapping the upper and bottom faces to hold the parts of the mid-sole together, and a shoe heel attached to the rearward end of the midsole.

2. In a shoe construction having the usual inner sole and out-sole, the combination therewith of a mid-sole extending the full length of the shoe, interposed between said parts and having its forepart materially thicker than the inner sole and out-sole and tapering rearwardly from said forepart lto substantially increased thickness at the rear portion of the heel, said mid-sole being composed of a shank part of rigid material and a forepart of flexible material, and joined together at an intermediate point thereof, said mid-sole being longitudinally arched at the shank of the shoe at the bottom surface thereof, a binder applied to the marginal edges of the midsole and overlapping the upper and bottom faces to hold the parts of the mid-sole together, and an additional thickness of material below the heel portion of the mid-soie forming a heel.

HARRY J. RUDNER. 

